Daijiworld Media Network - Jammu

Jammu, May 5: Security forces in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district thwarted a major terror plot after uncovering and destroying five improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and seizing communication equipment from a hidden terrorist cache, officials said on Monday.

The joint operation, conducted late Sunday evening by the Indian Army and Jammu & Kashmir Police’s Special Operations Group (SoG), targeted a hideout in the Suranthal area of Marhote, Surankote.

The recovered explosives included five ready-to-use IEDs, ranging from 0.5 kg to 5 kg, packed in steel buckets and tiffin boxes. These were safely neutralized through controlled detonations, preventing potential attacks in the sensitive border region.

Authorities also recovered two wireless communication sets, urea packets (used as bomb-making material), a gas cylinder, binoculars, woollen clothing, blankets, and kitchen utensils from the site — indicating the hideout had been recently used and possibly intended for longer stays.

This comes amid intensified crackdowns following the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, where 26 civilians — including 25 tourists — were killed in a brutal assault at Baisaran meadow. In response, security has been heightened across Jammu and Kashmir, with massive search operations, checkpoints, and tech-driven intelligence sweeps underway to root out terrorists and their supporters.

The government has also taken a hardline stance post-attack, with measures including:

• Deportation of all Pakistani nationals,
• Suspension of the Attari-Wagah border crossing,
• Halting cultural and trade exchanges,
• Suspension of mail and parcel services from Pakistan, and
• Reconsideration of the Indus Water Treaty.

A full-scale hunt for the five suspected attackers behind the Pahalgam massacre is ongoing across south Kashmir, as the government grants full operational freedom to the armed forces.